Opara: Labour Party Chairman, Abure Denies N3.5bn Fraud Allegation

Labour Party’s National Chairman, Julius Abure, has denied the accusations of misusing party funds leveled by the embattled National Treasurer.

Abure refuted claims that the party had amassed over N3.5 billion in its accounts, dismissing them as untrue.

Addressing the ongoing party crisis, Abure spoke on Arise Television’s Morning Show, countering allegations made by the suspended National Treasurer, Mrs. Oluchi Oparah. Oparah accused Abure of withholding access to the party’s financial records and bank accounts, insisting that he should be held accountable for funds exceeding N3.5 billion, purportedly raised from form sales and other fundraisers for the 2023 general election.

Oparah claimed that despite numerous appeals, Abure refused to disclose the party’s financial details post the closure of expression of interest and nomination forms sales.

In response, the Labour Party’s National Working Committee (NWC) imposed a six-month suspension on Oparah, branding her a mole manipulated by dissidents to sow discord within the party.

However, Abure has challenged Oparah to substantiate her claims regarding the N3.5 billion election funds, urging her to provide evidence supporting the alleged amount generated during the election period.

He said, “It’s not true that she said that the party has collected over N3 billion. I want to make it abundantly clear, we already have an audited report, made by a certified auditor of the party.

The party has an external auditor who has reviewed all the records. And we have all the audited statements of accounts of the party from 2022 to 2023.

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“All these records are available; the audited statement of account, I have it here.

“The total money, in summary, that entered the party account between 2022 and now is N1.3 billion; nothing more, nothing less.

“We also got N700 million, which were the campaign funds that went straight to the campaign organization for the campaigns. I didn’t know and I cannot reconcile where she got the N3.5 billion that she talked.

“I want to challenge her that she should make the record available where she arrived at the sum of N3.5bn as money generated during the election.”